Flying with the bike from Australia, my plan is to begin the overland journey from Kathmandu, Nepal.

Delhi is renowned for lengthy delays and endless paperwork, a legacy of the British Raj, so a border crossing seems an easier way to assimilate into the frenetic Indian traffic. Crossing the Himalayas sometimes at an altitude of 2582 metres the air is thin and the temperatures plummet once the sun disappears. Roads are narrow and switch back on themselves, winding down into deep valleys which means speeds will be slow and a great deal of care taken.

It’s approx 400 kms to the border at Butwal, where I envisage culture shock really begins. Confronted with a population of 1.21 billion people, all jostling for their own space, it’s a manic place for bike travellers, especially on a machine as old as this one. The plan is to make my way west across India, through Pakistan and on into Iran.

From here, the journey takes me through Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic, Germany and Belgium. i reckon by then I might be a bit saddle sore!